Mission Improbable
by Tororoplz
Summary: A Sgt. Frog/Invader Zim crossover.
1. Arrival of the Trainee

**This fanfiction was collaboratively written by myself and girr-chann on Deviantart.** It is a Sergeant Frog / Invader Zim crossover. As a crossover, it isn't merely a mesh of two fandoms, but a likely encounter between Keronians and Irkens at war. It focuses a lot on the characters, including several OCs. Enjoy!

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"Pu pu. My newest invention is almost done," Tororo said with a soft, mischievous laugh as he sat on the plush blue cushion in his small workspace, tinkering with a new weapon. His workspace—otherwise known as his room or his lab—was small in diameter, but in height, it was large enough to contain well over twenty monitors and computers mounted on the walls. He sat amid a pile of electronics and food, some of which was entangled in a loose haphazard of wires. A half-eaten pizza made the room smell like warm cheese.

Tororo was about to meet his new lackey, but couldn't care less about that. He was too busy. He certainly didn't care about looking like a slob in front of her. She was supposed to arrive within the next sidereal day, but in his current state of relentless focus on his latest project, he couldn't have been forced to lift a finger cleaning.

Garuru's ship had been parked near the intergalactic train station only minutes ago, and Tororo refused to leave the lab while his platoon went to fetch her.

Garuru hadn't bothered the Shinpei, knowing his reclusiveness would pay off when he finished his work. Besides, he was in a hurry.

So the Lieutenant left for the terminal with only Pururu and Taruru. Zoruru stayed behind to guard the ship.

"She should be on the next one," Pururu said with her nose in a piece of paper, then looked up at the gate numbers. The three of them waited, paying no mind to the masses of aliens passing by them. There were very few Keronians in the crowd. That would make the trainee easy to spot.

They watched the windows of the next train for her, but did not see any Keronian passengers.

That was because she was in the far back of the train, avoiding contact with people in general. She was a blue-skinned tadpole with long purple hair, a yellow helmet, and lightly purple tinted spectacles that resembled the ' ' character. Her belly symbol was that of three pixels set in a triangle, intersecting at the corners. Her name and rank was Yumomo Jotohei.

When the train stopped, Yumomo nervously waited in her seat. While she understood that trainees like her gained crucial work knowledge and experience from being paired with seasoned platoon members, she disliked working with others. She didn't look forward to this... At all. She hoped her soon-to-be mentor hated small talk just as much as she did.

Yumomo squeezed the supplies she carried in her arms, even more anxious to meet the platoon leader. She trembled in her seat, and her palms felt cold and sweaty. Her mind raced. What was this "mentor's" name again? Due to her nervousness, Yumomo hadn't really been paying attention like she should have... After all, the Garuru Platoon's reports on her would determine her future in the Keron army.

She could not blow this.

It irritated her that her glasses were foggy from the train ride. There were many aliens traveling via train, and all the body heat only made the train ride sticky and humid. Oh how Yumomo hated train rides...

Finally, everyone in front of her began to exit, allowing her a chance to stand and make her way out of the station. A voice on the intercom reminded everyone to have a great rest of the day; Yumomo irritably thinking to herself, 'Not likely...'

As she exited the train, she looked around. There were many large aliens walking past her and she found herself being bumped from all directions. Nor could she tell where she was going. She wandered around like a lost child, looking just as confused.

"Hey! Over here!" a male voice called over the crowd a moment later and she looked in that direction. There was a blue Keronian with small beady eyes waving his arms to catch her eye. Next to him were two others: a pink tadpole holding a small stack of papers, and an older purple male she instantly recognized.

First Lieutenant Garuru.

It would be an understatement to say that Yumomo was a nervous wreck when they spotted her. She saw the tadpole coming toward her and bashfully looked down at her feet, silently greeting them with a small bow. She usually wasn't one for manners, but her mother was strict when it came to dealing with other platoons. Especially higher ranking soldiers.

Pururu politely nodded her head at Yumomo and greeted her with a friendly "Hello," appearing un-intimidating.

Garuru slightly dipped his head, intimidating sharp eyes stopping on her and easily compensating for Pururu. However, when he spoke, he was more friendly than she expected. "Yumomo Jotohei... It's good to finally meet you." he said respectfully, earning a puzzled glance from Taruru.

It was easy to see how nervous Yumomo was, her arms visibly trembling as she held onto her things. It was hard to believe that she could handle much in the military. She didn't look that impressive, so the way the Lieutenant greeted her seemed out of place to him.

But there was no time for questions. They had to hurry to their next mission immediately after picking her up.

Yumomo noticed Garuru had his eye on the luggage claim and, shyly, she muttered "I ah... Have everything..."

"Then we're ready to go. This way." Garuru said as he made to turn and walk into the crowd. The others followed.

Yumomo was anxious to get away from the train station... There were too many aliens, and she felt like all of their eyes were focused on her. That irritable, cold sweat again...

Yumomo hesitantly followed the platoon back to their ship. Which one was supposed to be her mentor? Was it the blue one? Great... He didn't look that smart at all... This couldn't be the tech who was supposed to train her.


	2. First Encounter

"So you're the new trainee, huh?" Taruru asked as he fell into step with Yumomo. "How's it going with training? It's been a while since I was new." It sounded like he was flaunting his experience implicatively, but on the other hand, he had a way too oblivious look on his face.

Yumomo wasn't sure whether he was a showoff or just stupid.

"You don't look well. Are you alright?" Pururu asked Yumomo with a look of concern, frowning. She was excited, though, to finally have another female on board. It got lonely being surrounded by the guys every day, nice as they were...

This was exactly what Yumomo had hoped wouldn't happen: small talk. She kept her head down, trying to hide the blush that tinted her cheeks a light pink.

Seeing how composed Garuru was, not even looking at them as he walked ahead of the group with perfect posture, she then realized how ridiculous she must've looked. She inhaled deeply to calm herself, reminding herself that appearing calm and respectable was important. Her rank in the army depended on it.

Although she could force herself to converse, she still couldn't force a smile. "My training... It keeps me busy. But I enjoy it." she replied flatly to Taruru, careful to keep herself a certain distance from him. She didn't like being close to anyone. Or being touched.

Pururu's question had gotten her thinking, though. Boy, she must've looked strung out... The train ride was a few days long. She had trouble sleeping, what with all the other aliens stinking up the place. She devised an excuse in her head, though it wasn't a false one. "I'm really fatigued from the train ride..."

She hoped she wouldn't have to start any work right away, and could at least have time to get acquainted with her mentor. The thought of a nap made her eyes burn with longing.

Pururu smiled understandingly and seemed to read her mind. "You can rest once we get back to the ship." she said, and looked up in the direction of the parking zones. They were on one of the upper air strips.

After a while of walking, they reached the ship, and it opened to let them in as they approached the door.

"Isn't it cool that we get our own ship?!" Taruru said with enthusiasm as they went ahead inside.

"Tororo Shinpei is in that room." Garuru informed as the door closed behind them and they stood around in the main deck where the five cockpits were. Just around the corner where the Lieutenant was looking was a door with the Digital Hazard symbol on it.

Tororo? It wasn't Freckles? Thank god. She had dodged a bullet. Yumomo's memory was groggy on the subject, seeing as she was more focused on her work than with plans the officers had in store for her.

She swallowed hard, suddenly feeling an eerie shiver crawl down her spine as she looked at the door. She'd have to meet Tororo Shinpei before her nap...

"We cleared this room out for you. You can leave your things and rest up here." Pururu added as she went up to a different door closer to them and opened it. It had been used for storage and was quite large. Only part of the room was cleared and sectioned off. The rest contained assortments of weapons and other supplies.

Just the kind of thing that would keep Yumomo happily occupied. She was interested in the supplies that were in her room and inwardly smiled at the thought of continuing her normal work developing weapons while they trained her. Who knows? Maybe she could provide the platoon with new and improved firearms.

She turned to the others and thanked them sheepishly—being as she didn't usually thank others.

She glanced down the hall at Tororo's door again, feeling her knees start to become jelly underneath her. She didn't understand what made her so nervous, but she tried to ignore it as she made her way towards the Shinpei's lair.

It was difficult for Pururu to let Yumomo walk away. She looked forward to getting to know her better, but she knew the trainee needed time to settle in, and to meet Tororo right away. There would be more time for chit-chat later.

Soon, everyone was back at their work stations and ready to bring the ship up and leave the planet.

Zoruru, per usual, worked separately from the rest of his platoon. He had guarded the ship while they were parked and now kept an eye on the trainee from the shadows.

He wasn't the only one watching Yumomo, though. Tororo saw Yumomo long before she went to his door and not once did he have to look away from his work to do so.

When Yumomo opened the door, he already knew she was behind him. He had his back to her and did not turn around. There were a number of parts laid out around him: loose wires, circuity, and the casing for an odd little device labeled with his symbol and some sloppy handwriting in a sharpie that said 'V.05.'

Yumomo stared at the young Keronian from behind. She was content with the fact that he ignored her, but something else dug at her nerves... This was some kid, she realized. He looked like he was no older than she was...

This must've been some kind of joke. Yumomo was the first in her class; and she felt slight rage at having to be schooled by a child. She started to glare at him, feeling as though her eyes would burn right through the Shinpei if it weren't for her glasses shielding them.

Tororo could feel spite radiating off her like an aura. For what, who knew, but it amused him and he continued to work with a grin on his face, purposely ignoring her. She looked like she didn't have much nerve, he thought. Judging by what he had seen so far, she was probably the whimp-out type and would shy back out the door and leave him alone if he ignored her long enough.

After a moment, Yumomo didn't seem to mind the mess and stepped over his things to get to him, kicking boxes and snacks aside casually. With the competitive fury that'd built up inside her, she didn't feel as tired as she had just minutes ago.

Standing right behind him now, she stared at his computer screen. Whatever he was doing, she hardly cared. She'd never admit to Tororo that his skill with numbers was several steps ahead of hers, she having struggled with doing calculations in her head as well as she could on paper. A burning feeling of envy built up in her chest as she watched him.

She wouldn't let this little punk outsmart her, she decided... Her pride, and her drive to impress her father wouldn't allow it.

She composed herself, taking a deep breath to extinguish the small flame burning in her chest, before dropping her sketchbook at his side.

According to her officers, she was required to show Tororo what she knew or was currently working on. As displeased as she was with having to do so, she left the sketchbook for him to look through and began walking back towards the exit. "I'll be in my room, Sir." she said dully as she left the lab.

Her stomach churned with nervous energy. She had never shown anyone the drawings in that sketchbook besides her father. It contained all of her latest and greatest explosives with drawn out equations littered everywhere next to diagrams of weapons. Mainly bombs.

She clenched her fists, her whole body so tensed up she could barely reach her hand out to open the door of her new room. Thankfully, she managed, walking over to the bed. She removed her lenses, setting them on a nearby nightstand.

Tororo's shoulders shook with quiet laughter after she left. "Pu-pu-pu... " That was it? He could get used to being addressed as 'Sir,' and she wasn't as annoying as he thought. She had some attitude, though. A dark shadow formed over his face from the brim of his helmet as he looked down at the sketchbook she deposited on the floor, and a grin slowly spread across his face. He had an idea to really test her nerve.

Her work wasn't bad, he thought as he skimmed through the sketchbook, but he could find mistakes in it... And boy did he pick out every single error. He was a stickler for details and took a red pen to her sketchbook without mercy. He was ruthless in crossing out numbers and editing her work, 'fixing' even the most minuscule errors in her equations (that was where she seemed to have the most trouble).

He knew it would annoy her, but more importantly, it would keep her busy and out of his lab.


	3. Born Rivals

A painful lump still sat firmly in Yumomo's throat, making it strenuous for her to relax. Being one of the only female Keronian's excelling in the technology, she'd often been looked down upon by the males in her class; putting her under constant pressure and stress.

Already she'd felt pressured from being compared to Tororo. There was nothing that troubled Yumomo more than being inferior... or worse, inane.

Tororo's sinister chuckle echoed in the back of her mind, causing her hands to tremble in silent asperity. In a futile effort to calm herself, she began to brush her hair hastily, having to collect it in her arms and rest it on her lap so she could reach it. Before she could get very far in her therapeutic brushing, a knock startled her.

"Yumomo? How did it go with Tororo Shinpei? Do you need anything?" The voice was Pururu's. She had been eager to check on Yumomo since she met with Tororo.

By the time Pururu walked in, Yumomo had totally forgotten that she'd taken off her lenses, her eyes wide with realization once she made eye contact with the medic. She gasped in slight panic and hid her face by turning over and lying with her back facing Pururu. Flustered, Yumomo replied. "U-uhm... A glass of water... Please," grabbing a handful of her hair and nervously twirling it, Yumomo awaited Pururu to disappear from her doorway.

Pururu looked concerned at Yumomo's reaction. "Okay. I'll be right back." She walked out to the sink in a nearby room with a small kitchen to get a cup, and poured some water from the filtered nozzle into it. She came back to Yumomo with the water and set it down on the table. "You look stressed. Are you going to be alright? The kitchen is the second door to the left if you're hungry." she offered.

Yumomo had started feeling very ill since Pururu's trip; though not forgetting to put her lenses back on before her arrival. She was grateful for Pururu's hospitality. Without it, she still may have been frantically trembling in distress. She thanked Pururu with a nod and chugged the glass down in a matter of seconds.

She'd felt rather dehydrated after all she'd been through that day, and ice water had proved more refreshing than she'd thought possible. Feeling better, Yumomo answered Pururu's questions in a mild mannered tone. "I'm fine, thanks..." she blushed a little, not used to any kind of special treatment. It felt quite... Invigorating for someone who was used to being treated poorly by her partners.

Before Yumomo could make an excuse to avoid further conversation, she couldn't help but wonder if Tororo had finished looking through her work, itching to get some ideas on paper before she'd slept. This was routine for her, and it'd become vital for her to get any sleep after many years.

Reluctantly, Yumomo asked one last favor of her overly friendly host.  
"I've left my notes with Tororo for him to look over... If it's no disquiet, would you salvage them for me...?" Yumomo asked in a demure manner, hoping that Tororo hadn't bothered to look through them at all.

Pururu nodded. "I'll go check on him and get it for you." she agreed, happy to help Yumomo while she was adjusting. This must have been quite a difference for her, leaving the military grounds and entering directly into their platoon's ship.

She looked back over her shoulder as she walked out, and rounded the corner over to Tororo's room.

He had finished marking every incorrect detail in Yumomo's book. She had some interesting concepts, he noticed, mostly for explossives. He didn't specialize in explosives, but they did come naturally to him, and he was mildly fascinated. After taking the red pen to it, he set her book down in the same place she left it, not bothering to close it all the way. He heard Pururu at the door.

"Hey, Tororo. I'm just getting Yumomo's notes for her. Did you look over them?" Pururu asked, to which he responded without turning around.

"Yeah," he said, and held up the notebook, only glancing over his shoulder for a moment as she took it. He was more well-mannered with Pururu than Yumomo, considering her rank was higher. Not that he always cared.

"I'll tell her. Thank you," Pururu said politely and stepped out, going back to Yumomo's room to deliver the notebook.

The anticipation ate away at Yumomo's nerves like acid, a few minutes feeling much more like an hour. She figured Tororo couldn't have found many flaws in her work- being more concerned about having to share her ideas with him.

As Pururu entered, Yumomo felt a small wave of relief in seeing her beloved sketchbook carried in with her. "Thank you..." She set the notebook on the night stand, acting as though she was about to get some sleep. She removed her helmet and lay down on her bed, yawning at Pururu. "That's all I need for tonight... Thanks again..."

Yumomo still wasn't that great at this whole "manners" and "thanking" thing, but she'd made a stalwart effort, administering the smallest half smile. She silently awaited Pururu to leave her be, dreading the possibility of Tororo's hideous scribbling all over her precious inventions.

"You're welcome," Pururu said, and made to step out of the room. "By the way," she added before leaving, wanting to make sure that Yumomo was kept updated with what the platoon was up to, "We're going to get a call from HQ about our next mission in about an hour. If you're not out already, I'll knock on your door. You'll want to be present for the meeting we'll have afterwards." Then, with an "Well, I'll see you soon," she left Yumomo alone.

Only one hour? Yumomo felt irritated at the thought of having to see Tororo again in the same night... but the idea of a mission sounded thrilling. She'd never been apart of a mission with any platoon, and this would be the perfect opportunity to show the army she was ready for one. She'd show the Garuru platoon what she was made of.

She casually reached for her sketchbook, opening it up. Her eyes widened in horror; Yumomo flipping through the pages frantically to find that nearly ALL of her work had been corrected by Tororo. His odious handwriting and corrective markings overlapped hers, and on a few pages they trailed over her drawings. Fury blasted through her arteries like a bullet train, her eyes welling up with heavy tears of frustration. Had she really done her calculations that poorly? And whats worse, corrected by some child!? Her hands squeezed her notebook so hard it'd began to bend it out of shape. She wouldn't let this kid make a fool out of her. She wasn't much younger than him after all. She looked hard at one particular equation Tororo corrected... This one wasn't paired with a drawing, so Tororo probably didn't know what this one was for... But Yumomo did.  
Her heavy tears traveled down her cheek only to meet a sinister grin. An idea.

"Kekeke... he really is a fool... KEKEKE!" she laughed maliciously to herself, picking up a pen she'd chewed the top off of, and redoing her incorrect equations one by one. She'd never have them done before the meeting... but she would have most of them done by tomorrow morning. She was determined.


	4. A Classified Mission

It was the slowest hour Garuru's platoon had experienced in a long time as they waited for a call from HQ. After completing their last mission that took several long months, they were more than ready to be assigned a new task.

All Garuru knew was that their next mission would be highly classified and dangerous. This piqued his curiosity more than anything, and he spent the hour silently guessing their next assignment as he sat at the controls with a pensive look on his face. When the clock finally hit zero on the hour, time seemed to slow down for all of them from the anticipation that had built up. It was several minutes later when they received the call.

Taruru and Zoruru were present, but Pururu had gone to fetch Tororo and the trainee, Yumomo, neither of which had bothered to show up on their own. Garuru answered the call with no choice but to disregard their absence for now.

Just down the hall in his lab, Tororo had finished his latest invention. He sealed the tabs that held its casing together and left the case unscrewed for now as he held it up with eager pride. "Pu pu pu. Now to test it." he said to himself as he looked it over. His head lowered ominously and a devilish grin spread across his face. He looked forward to the next part. He would test it on—

A knock on the door interrupted his sinister mood.

"The meeting is starting." came Pururu's voice.

Great. He wouldn't get to testing this thing for a while. He had been working on it all night and right when he finished, she had to show up.

He made an irritated face over his shoulder.

"Tororo?" Her annoying voice again.

"Coming." he responded curtly, set the device down, and got up off his cushion.

After getting a response from him, Pururu went from Tororo's door to Yumomo's and delivered the same message.

It snapped Yumomo out of a deep state of concentration. She had been up all night, still fixing the calculations in her notebook that Tororo had marked for correction. Irritably, she tossed her notebook on the night stand and made her way toward the door of her room.

Not wanting to walk alongside anyone, she poked her head outside her door to make sure the coast was clear before leaving. Pururu was already down the hall, she noted. She wanted to be the last one there.

Yumomo briskly made her way through the empty hall until she reached the platoon, creeping in and standing a set distance away from them. She was more comfortable being unnoticed...

She wasn't the last one to arrive, though. Soon, Tororo came out of his lab and walked to the main deck where the rest of his platoon was. He sat down at his usual seat. The call from HQ was open and everyone quietly listened in for details on the mission.

There were visuals on the large projection screen in front of the windshield as well, showing the planet where they would be assigned. It was... wait. Tororo stared when he realized he recognized it. It couldn't be... could it?

Yumomo adjusted her glasses to better see the screen. If she hadn't been wearing her lenses at the time, like Tororo, her surprised expression would have been easily exposed. She also recognized the infamous red planet.

"Irk is the most dangerous mission we have open right now, but someone's gotta do it, and your platoon is the most qualified. It's got to be an undercover invasion, and with Irkens being a Type III civilization, this mission's highly classified. Warn your platoon not to tell their friends, familities—anyone—about Mission Irk until it's complete." explained the higher up from HQ over the transmission.

Irk?! That was their next mission? Yumomo had heard of the Irken Armada being a continuous predicament for the Keron army. Like Keronians, Irkens were invaders, but unlike Keronians, they were much more cruel and tight-fisted. She was surprised the Keron Army would even attempt going up against them with only one platoon. She could feel herself tremble with anticipation, feeling privileged to be part of such a serious operation.

Her excitement was short lived as she remembered that she still had to work with that... Tororo. Having not even seen his face yet, curiosity compelled her to glance at him from the corner of her eye.

Her thoughts became a bit jumbled suddenly, not sure how to process what she was seeing, and not realizing she had been staring at him now for nearly a full minute. She was completely oblivious to how feverishly she was blushing.

Tororo rested his head on the back of his hand, appearing under-stimulated and bored. He didn't see why his attendance was mandatory when he could simply watch them through a camera. Why did he even have to watch? There were no visuals on the screen except a picture of Planet Irk, which he could get off the Internet.

He happened to catch sight of Yumomo standing off in the corner, eyes drawn to anything remotely more interesting than the meeting.

Suddenly, confusion fell over him. Why was she looking at him? And the look on her face... He turned his head to see if it was something behind him, then turned back to find her still staring at him. Her face looked weird, like she had just eaten the most amazing cinnamon bun of her life.

Yumomo had snapped out of it once Tororo made eye contact, snapping her attention away from him quickly.

Tororo shrank slightly in his seat, not sure what to make of it, and turned his attention back to Garuru, who had just finished explaining that they were going to join a resisting force of various aliens or whatever.

Yumomo couldn't believe she caught herself staring at him, blushing even worse now just out of sheer embarrassment. She decided it would probably just be best for her to keep her eyes from wandering and listen to Garuru as she should be.

It would be an understatement to say Yumomo was excited to be working with other aliens. This had nothing to do with friendship purposes, of course... Yumomo simply was intrigued by foreign alien technology and explosives. She was certain that she could impress her father by mastering alien technology... And mastering a new rank in the army.

This whole mission would be great for her reputation, if successful- and she would stop at nothing to make it so.

She did her best to listen to Garuru, but like Tororo, she would much rather have a project at her fingertips.

Yumomo boredly leaned against the wall, making sure her face wasn't at all visible to Tororo, lest she humiliate herself again.

Tororo had gone back to being entirely bored as Garuru gave them an overview of their plans.

"Pack your things. We'll be staying on board a Vortian ship." the captain said with a serious look as his eyes swept over Tororo, who was not known for being a good packer. Tororo didn't appear to be listening, but Garuru knew from experience with the Shinpei that he was in fact very attentive. If quizzed, Tororo could repeat back to them every detail of the meeting.

Garuru moved his gaze over to Yumomo, who he noticed looked equally bored, and who he had not worked with long enough to expect the same. "Tororo. Yumomo. Do you know anything else about this mission?" he questioned after a moment to test them, and to snap them out of their boredom-induced stupor.

"No," Tororo replied with his head lifted but eyes still bored behind his glasses. Fortunately no one would notice. He didn't like being readable, or pestered.

Yumomo didn't even look up right away when addressed. She was quiet for a moment, shy to share her knowledge with them... She was a bit embarrassed that she'd put any time into studying it, but decided maybe now it would come in handy.

"W-well." Yumomo cleared her throat quietly before continuing. "Vortians were past allies of the Irkens... Vortians are highly responsible for their technological resources. In fact, Vortain's are responsible for many of the Irken's military gear, including the popular MegaDoomer... with that knowledge, I believe we'll have quite the advantage, Sir..." She timidly looked down at her feet after speaking, noticing everyone was looking at her now, and blushed so vividly her face was almost all red. Great... she should have just kept her mouth shut... She simply wasn't accustomed to this much attention; especially from a high ranking officer like Garuru.

Even Tororo had an incredulous look on his face. She had a far better knowledge of Vortians than any of them expected. However, Tororo wrote it off as a coincidence, a special area of knowledge she happened to have, and his attention wandered off of her.

"Very good..." Garuru said after a lengthy pause, sounding mildly impressed. Very few beginning weapons specialists knew about the MegaDoomer. "That will give us a good advantage. The Captain of Irken Resistance, Vortian Lard Nar, also has blueprints for the Irkens' Fleet Leader. With his cooperation, we'll have all the tools we need to complete our mission."

He seemed pleased and turned to the rest of them with a few final words. "Vortians were recently invaded... " he added in a low, serious tone. "They know what we are and won't take kindly to us. When we board their ship, there will be a lot of comfortable couches... Whatever you do, don't compliment the couches. Meeting over."

He got a few stares from around the room, but no one questioned it, too busy thinking about all the details of their mission.

Yumomo was the first to leave, trying to make sure she got back to her room before anyone stopped her for any reason. Reaching the safety of her room, she exhaled deeply and leaned her back against her door. This had already been such a long night, and Yumomo wanted contact with nobody else. She needed to finish correcting her work... All of it.

She lie down on her bed and picked up her notebook again. A small pang of fury still hit her when looking at how Tororo labeled all her work as incorrect... But she kept her calm, continuing fixing each problem one at a time.

Hours passed. Hours and hours. Still awake, her eyes baggy and exhausted from no sleep. This had continued until early morning. Yumomo lie sprawled out on her bed, her sketch book full of re written and finished formulas was set comfortably on her belly, her pen still in her hand, and her lenses at the end of the bed. She had used Tororo's method to help her complete all of the work he'd marked wrong.

For much longer than any usual Keronian, Yumomo continued her slumber. She was supposed to meet up with Tororo in the morning to begin working, but hours passed since then. Who knew how this would affect her report in the future...


	5. KA-BOOM!

Tororo was quick to leave the meeting that night. Not as quick as Yumomo, but quick. He got back to work on his project and slept well. He gave some thought to his job with Yumomo, but not much. So far it was easy: all he had to do was show her things, made even easier by correcting the work in her notebook instead of having to sit in front of the computer and point things out to her step-by-step. He also had to log a daily report, but that took mere minutes.

The next day, he noticed that she didn't show up, but didn't particularly care.

He would only start caring when he needed to test his new invention. As for the moment, he didn't feel like getting up from his seat.

It was Taruru, instead, who realized Yumomo was still asleep and went to wake her up. It was noted in Yumomo's file that her sleeping habits had always been a problem. She was not supposed to be sleeping in this late.

He guessed she was asleep, anyway, because her room had been closed all morning without a peep heard from behind the door.

He knocked. "Yumomo? Hello?"

There was no reply. She didn't stir, but something in her room did... On her bed next to her, something crawled right next to Yumomo's head and beeped quietly. Then...

'DOOM!' an explosion from behind the door shook the entire ship and smoke poured out from underneath her door. Immediate coughing could be heard and Yumomo bursted out of her room, charred black from the explosion.

Surprisingly, she was okay. She must have been used to being blown up spontaneously. Her eyes were wide with excitement, she couldn't help but grin at what'd just happened; explosions had thrilled Yumomo since she was a younger tadpole. "Ke ke-ke! Ka-Boom!" She didn't even notice Taruru standing there as she gleefully cheered, too involved with her amazing wake up call. She hardly noticed that her side was bleeding from where her grenade, which she endearingly named 'Nade-ling, hit her.

Taruru got a puff of sooty black smoke to the face and widened his eyes. He stared incredulously at Yumomo, half his face blackened by soot, but otherwise he was unscathed. Unlike her.. "WHOA! What was that?!" His eyes darted around and he spotted the little robot spider... thing. Then his gaze lifted to Yumomo and he gasped, spreading his arms and legs in alarm. "Hey! You're bleeding!"

As soon as Yumomo noticed Taruru, she snapped out of her strange excitement. She felt her side, winced, and lifted her hand to see that it was covered in blood. This was nothing she wasn't used to; she was always getting injured while testing explosives. It thrilled her in some way...

She still hadn't noticed her lenses weren't on her face, however, and held her hand on her bleeding side. "Ahhh... I'm fine, really Taruru..." she shut her room door to keep more smoke from pouring out, making a mental note to clean the room later when she had time.

Thankfully, her notebook was conveniently nearby during the explosion, so she had grabbed hold of it and managed to protect it from most of the blast. The sides of the paper were burnt black to a crisp, but she didn't mind. She went through many notebooks in the past.

She finally realized when she felt her face that she wasn't wearing her lenses. In slight panic, she hastily grabbed another pair of glasses and put them on. "Ah- uhm... I have work to do!" she said and briskly walked past Taruru toward the bathroom so she could wash herself off. At least get the blood all wiped up...

Taruru stared at her as she left. Her eyes... They were... Pretty... but... something was off about them. She had the strangest eyes. He was about to comment on them, but she had already walked away. "Uh!" He hesitated. Maybe she didn't want him to see them. "Wait!" He went after her. "There's something you should know!" he tried to warn, but it was soon too late.

Yumomo had slept through their landing and the gravity outside her room was only one third what it was inside. They had boarded the Vortian ship and Garuru's ship was shrunken down to be conveniently stored.

Through the windshield, an oversized tile floor could be seen. They, within Garuru's ship, were all inside a Shrinkity Field.

Tororo came out of his lab. He had been nagged by Garuru to finally pack his things and his room was, for once, not completely full of junk. There was a large pile left behind, but most of his belongings were now in an infinite storage device that he kept under his helmet.

He was aware and expecting of the gravity difference and took light steps. It caused a small floating effect and made it even easier for him to walk. Being physically weak and lazy, he liked that.

He stopped, noticing Yumomo was charred black when she came towards him. "Pu pu pu." he laughed at her, and then asked "What happened?"

"I don't know! That thing blew up!" Taruru answered from behind her before she could say anything, and he pointed where the Nade-ling had landed.

Yumomo stumbled over herself from the unexpected lack of gravity. She let go of her wound in case she was going to trip, but made sure not to drop her precious notebook. When she looked up at Tororo, she froze up, humiliated that she looked so damn ridiculous. Her hair was coated with debris and ashes, and if it weren't for her face being charred black, he would've seen her face darken red as the blood oozed from her side.

To avoid further embarrassment, she kept her head down and quickened her steps, disappearing behind the bathroom door without a word. Her heart raced from all the excitement she already experienced in the first ten minutes of her day.

From this she was left with no choice but to surmise that today was going to be a long one.

She took her lenses back off and ran the sink once in the bathroom, splashing warm water on her face, and other areas to wash off blood and debris. The pain in her side began to set in and Yumomo started to feel nauseated. She could feel her knees turn to jelly. They trembled, as though they could barely hold her weight despite the lack of gravity.

Tororo was content to leave without talking to her. It was obviously one of Yumomo's explosives. He had seen her work in her notebook and knew that's what it was.

"Shouldn't we make sure she's alright?" Taruru asked, stopping him from leaving. "Did you see how she was bleeding?"

Tororo stood by with no comment as Taruru went up to the bathroom door and lightly rapped it. "Yumomo, you okay in there? Hey Tororo." He looked over. "Go get Pururu. I think she's on the main deck."

"Okay," Tororo agreed. He didn't like being an errand boy, but whatever. At least that gave him an excuse to leave. He started out of Garuru's ship through the Shrinkity Field, which brought him back to normal size as soon as he exited.

The Vortian ship was still enormous, though, at least twenty times bigger than Garuru's. It was meant for aliens of all shapes and sizes, and among them, Keronians were the smallest. Standing at around two feet tall, they were shorter than the four to five foot-tall Irkens and Vortians, and even they were smaller than many other aliens.

Tororo made his way through the large halls to the main deck where he found Pururu. He told her about Yumomo. Soon, Pururu would be on her way back without him, and he could go off to do whatever he pleased.

In the meantime, Taruru squished himself against the bathroom door to listen for Yumomo. He didn't know much about medical or psychological stuff, but Yumomo seemed kind of... insane, judging by her how happy she acted earlier when the bomb went off, and her freaky eyes.

He kind of wanted to check on her. She could be bleeding to death in there for all he knew. But what if she went crazy on him? Pururu should be there in a few minutes... She would know what to do.

Yumomo opened the door after a minute or two, a little irritated to find that Taruru was pressed against it. She didn't want anyone to see her at the moment and would rather have just been left to handle this herself. She had been through this before, and she couldn't help but feel inferior when needing to depend on others for help.

"I don't need any help, Taruru.." she said in a hoarse voice as she went back to the sink and splashed some more water on her face. She sipped some of it out of her hands in attempt to calm her stomach down.

Taking deep breaths, she continued to clean her wound until most of the blood was washed off, then she grabbed a nearby towel and pressed it against her side. Her hair was still quite dusty from the blow, but that was a problem for later when she had more time. She was already late to wake, so she knew she was behind on work.

Making sure to wear her glasses and retrieve her notebook before leaving, Yumomo exited the bathroom slowly. She made sure not to exert herself even though her wound wasn't as bad as it had looked before. It was just a little blood. She was sure she could remove the towel in less than an hour, even.

Momentarily glancing at Taruru, she nodded at him as if to thank him for making an effort in checking on her, then walked back in the direction she came.

It was at about that time, fortunately, that Pururu showed up. "Hey, Yumomo. Hold on a minute! Pururu is here," Taruru called after her, walking after the strange girl to try to get her to stop.

"Yumomo!" Pururu called as she hurried to them. She stopped a couple feet from the two with a look of concern. "I heard about what happened. You already dressed it? Did you disinfect it?" she questioned in a rushed manner, moving tentatively closer. "Can I see?"

Yumomo backed away from them slightly, feeling overwhelmed by the sudden attention. What was the big deal? Stuff like this happened to her all the time, and she never had anyone worry as much as this since living with her mother on Keron.

"Ah- uhmm. I'm fine... I cleaned it.. Please, I don't need anything.." she started to back off, hoping she could just get past them and do her work; but Pururu was insistent on at least seeing her wound. With a sigh of capitulation, Yumomo decided that the sooner she allowed the medic to do her job, the sooner she would be left alone.

The wound wasn't as bad as it may have seemed after the explosion. It was a bit burnt up, and still bleeding, but was nothing less of what Yumomo had called it. A simple flesh wound. If she was feeling any pain, she wasn't expressing it; seeming more annoyed than hurt.

Pururu was mostly concerned because she had dealt with patients who didn't like to be looked at, who made their injuries out to be nothing, and minimized it. In fact, Garuru's entire platoon, excluding Taruru, was that way. Garuru himself toughed out even broken bones, Zoruru avoided physical contact at all costs and would go missing for days if wounded, and Tororo acted like a pervert only to get her away from him when he was injured—if not entirely oblivious to the injury.

But it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. When she heard 'explosion' from Tororo, she imagined the worst, but Yumomo had come out of it decently. "How's the pain?" she asked after looking over the wound, and motioning with a nod that it was alright, and that Yumomo could cover it up again. "You look alright for being blown up... But if you're in any pain I can give you some medicine." It didn't sound like she was in pain, but Pururu had to offer.

Yumomo shook her head. "I don't need medication. The pain has gone..." she walked past Pururu and Taruru with every intention to leave them behind before she'd gotten questioned further. Before rounding the corner to exit the ship and board the Vortian ship, she shot Taruru a knowing glance from behind her lenses; the dim lights giving them a sinister looking glint before she'd disappeared behind the other side of the wall.

Yumomo promptly made her way onto the other ship to meet up with Garuru, already having been much later than she would've liked. When she managed to catch up with him, she bowed her head apologetically for her tardiness.

Clenching her notebook in her arms, she then remembered she was supposed to meet up with Tororo and plan out her tasks for the day. For each day, her mentor was supposedly given a list of training exercises to go over with the apprentice, and being as late as this day started, she probably had a lot to catch up on with him.

Though he was standing nearby, she hadn't noticed- instead looking up at a nearby Vortain in awe. She couldn't believe how tall they were compared to her! Then again, Keronians were one of the smallest races of aliens. She figured what her people lack in size, they make up for in everything else.

It was pretty cool to be on a ship with such diversity, Yumomo thought as she looked all around at their technology in admiration.

Meanwhile, Taruru and Pururu were left standing by the bathroom, their mouths in an 'o' shape after she left, although both thinking different things. Pururu was curious as to why Yumomo retreated so adamantly, whereas Taruru saw when her glasses flashed and wondered if she was insane. He paled "She's kinda loony, huh?"

"Huh?" Pururu turned her head to him in bemusement. Loony? Did he mean mentally ill? Oh, maybe she was. That would explain why she didn't want to be looked at. But Pururu suspended her judgement with that—Yumomo was probably just in a hurry. She did get up late.

"Yeah..." Taruru answered with a lack of words, thinking Yumomo had to be some kind of crazy. Then, he started to walk in the direction she went.

"I think she forgot to unpack," Pururu commented as she walked with him, but oh well. Yumomo was running late with her schedule and would catch up later. She could always come back for her things.


	6. Yes, SIr

The main deck was the frontmost chamber with a large windshield across most of the front side. It consisted of a raised platform in the center where the Captain's chair was mounted on a robotic arm. Along the front wall that the windshield stretched along were controls and alien pilots manning them. On the opposite end of the room were what most resembled bleachers, lined with alien crew members engaging in various activities. Others wandered around the chamber.

Garuru, along with Captain Lard Nar, were on the main deck. The Lieutenant turned a displeased gaze to Yumomo when she entered the room, but didn't scold her for being late. He scrutinized her from afar, looking for signs of embarrassment. She was new and it was his job to assess new recruits. He needed to see what discouraged and what motivated them in order to bring out their highest potential. If she was embarrassed, then he didn't need to waste his breath on her. However, just looking at her, he wasn't sure, and a few seconds later, he was distracted by something the other captain said. He had been talking to Lard Nar before Yumomo came in and promptly turned his attention away from her.

Tororo was also on the main deck and took an immediate interest in the Vortian technology. He knew this was allegedly the last Vortian ship left after the sweep when they were invaded by Irkens.

Tororo stood by the pilots, but without needing to turn his head, he saw Yumomo. He raised a hand by his mouth, and made a soft sound into it as a shadow crossed his face. "Pu pu... "

He had an idea. Those training exercises he was supposed to instruct her on were boring and useless. He had permission to change them up a little bit... as long as they met the right criteria... and one portion involved a physical workout.

He started to walk towards Yumomo, stopping a couple feet from her. "You're late," he pointed out tersely.

Sweating from embarrassment as soon as Tororo spoke to her, Yumomo's head sulked. The shadows weren't enough to hide how red her face became. As if she hadn't already looked like a mess and been blown up and point blank, she just had to be late along with it. So far this was going... Terribly. There was no use in getting too upset, her mind reminded her heart.

"It won't happen again, Sir..." Yumomo said in a quiet, wistful tone. She began wondering if her bad sleeping habits had even BEEN in her paperwork as her father had mentioned, because it didn't seem like they'd expected her to have trouble waking up.

Quickly, she dismissed the thought. If she was to become a vital part of any platoon, she had to wake herself without bombs. That was an invention she'd have to come up with later.

Swallowing hard, she gathered the nerve to turn and face him, standing up straight, her notebook tucked comfortably under her left arm. "What are my orders?" she asked.

Yumomo wanted to get straight to her work, refusing to give up on having a good report for the day. She would fight for it with everything she had.

Tororo could see from her determination that he wouldn't have much trouble manipulating her. "Pu pu... " he laughed into his hand with a sinister smirk. Because he usually smiled in the same way, it would have gone unnoticed by just anyone who didn't know him.

He enjoyed being boss, and the fun he would have with Yumomo had only started. Sure, he had to do some extra work writing up the reports, but it would all be worth it.

He started to take a familiar device out from behind his back. It was the one he had finished working on earlier. "Your first test... " He pressed a button. The device created a faintly lit energy field that latched onto Yumomo, then he turned it on himself, connecting it to him. It didn't seem to do anything, though. "...Will be to make three laps around the room."

Most of the tests and tasks he had to assign her would be cerebral, but the Keron Army did require some physical work as well, even from their tech trainees.

He remembered, that was always his least favorite part of training.

"This will transfer your energy to me. Go ahead and start." he said as he waited for the field to take effect. Not only was she being tested, she was providing him with leg power, and she was testing his energy transfer device. A win-win-win situation for him.

The aliens around them didn't pay them any mind, although Garuru had his eyes on them. He knew Tororo was dangerous to leave unattended.

Yumomo would've given him a quizzical look had she not already been late, but seeing as she had been, she figured this exercise was perhaps a bit of a punishment for her lack of responsibility this morning. She accepted with a nod, then quickly began running laps.

She had never been one to mind physical activity, in fact, she'd done rather well in the physical portion of training. Yumomo had also been the first to capture the flag all the times in their base conquering exercises; proving her to be swift and sneaky.

Her hair flowed behind her like a tail as she ran her third and final lap around the room, stopping in front of Tororo once she completed the lap. With her breath only slightly labored, it was easy to see that she hadn't been close to tiring. She had more stamina than one would expect from a tech trainee. Most of this was result of her harsh training on Keron. Asking no questions, she awaited her next orders quietly and patiently as she caught her breath.

Tororo's brow furrowed. He couldn't believe she was that fit, even against the energy sapper. He wouldn't have been able to do it. She looked so show-offy, too, with the her shiny flowy hair. He didn't know what to feel.

Since she completed the task, that meant he had to come up with the next one. Good thing he was excellent at improvising, because he didn't expect her to be to complete the laps. Which would have given her a bad mark and result in early extraction from the mission, he had hoped. Much as he liked being called 'Sir,' he didn't look forward to babysitting some trainee during the Irk invasion.

"Okay... " He started to think about what she could do next.

Yumomo narrowed her eyes a bit at Tororo from behind her lenses... He seemed disappointed at something... What was he trying to do with that device? She noticed she felt more worn out than usual from just a small jog... It seemed nearly impossible for her to catch her breath, and it was only getting harder and harder... Was he trying to tire her out? Suspicious about her strange exercise, she glared at her mentor sharply. He was up to something.


	7. Earth's Defender

"Hey!" a voice came from overhead.

Tororo and Yumomo quickly saw that they were being addressed by a very tall Pekoponian.

Yumomo was shocked. Were they really this big in person? Or maybe he wasn't a pekoponian, but some humanoid alien that looked identical.

Tororo didn't bother to turn or lift his head (as if he really wanted to feel smaller in comparison to the seven foot-tall guy who's shadow he was standing in).

"You're Keronians, right? Mind if I get some pictures?" the Pekoponian asked curiously. He proceeded to kneel down to their level, lift the camera that was tied around his neck, and poke out his tongue as he manually focussed it—it was a nice, fancy camera.

It had been several years since Zim came to Earth. About six years in fact. Dib was seventeen years old now and taller than most people his age, much like his father. He had only joined The Resisty a month ago while they passed by Earth.

He wore attire similar to those that he saw himself wearing in the alternate muffin reality when he had gone to check on Zim in a suspension tube. His attire consisted of a blue labcoat and vest with blue gloves and goggles. His goggles currently hung around his neck.

Before even waiting for an answer, he snapped a few shots of the alien frogs.

Tororo seemed impervious to the bright flash, the same grin remaining on his face, whereas Yumomo flinched and backed away from Dib. She blinked the flash out of her eyes before getting a good look at him.

Yumomo's dismay quickly turned to excitement. She observed the Pekoponian closely by walking up to him and curiously touching him on the leg while he was still level with them. He was warm blooded, unlike Keronians such as herself, which intrigued her. Then her attention focused on his strange device... She saw how the lens had moved when he adjusted it to take pictures, and wondered how it functioned. There was so much she wanted to know, feeling even more eager for her mission to begin.

"You are from Pekopon? Why are you here?" she asked Dib with heightened curiosity. She had only ever met one Pekoponian before, and had always wanted to meet others. However, this was not the spot she expected to meet them. Hadn't her father assisted in the mission to conquer their planet? He didn't hate the Keronians for stealing his home? So many questions she wanted to ask him, but was much too introverted. The next few pictures he snapped she didn't mind, closing her eyes to avoid being blinded again.

Dib was as curious as Yumomo, looking down with fascination when she came up to him. "Uh, Pekopon... " He paused on that word. He heard that before by some aliens. Not all, but some. It seemed that the name was used by aliens in a certain galaxy cluster. The same one that Keron was in. "Right. We call it Earth." he added with a slight smile as he corrected her, not that he really cared about which name was used.

Dib sat so that he only had one leg up and rested a hand on his knee, which was easier than kneeling as he took some more pictures, then lowered his camera. "We have a common enemy, it seems," he started to explain with interest, eyes narrowing. "There was an Irken on Earth: Zim. I fought with him for YEARS, defending Earth!" he said with a clenching fist. "If the Keron Army hadn't invaded and forcibly extracted him, he would have taken over and DESTROYED humanity!" he said, teeth grit with fervor, but a second later, his expression snapped back to normal. "So that worked out, but y'know, revenge and everything. We have to stop the Irkens before they conquer the universe!"

Over the years, Dib had changed, but he was still the same passionate defender of Earth and paranormal enthusiast. To anyone who knew him when he was younger, though, he had become jaded and lacked the energy to be bitter and high-strung. His attitude seemed more neutral, even towards Zim, except for when he was exceptionally angry.

"By the way, I'm not thanking you or anything. After I deal with the Irkens, I'm going to take Earth back from the Keronians." he said in a casual, matter-of-fact tone.

Yumomo couldn't help but smirk a little. She thought his determination was quite amusing, yet relatable. "Well... I look forward to seeing your success." She turned back to Tororo, who only showed mild interest, walking back toward him before suddenly feeling very, very exhausted...

She stopped for a moment, leaning over and resting her arm on the wall, feeling as though she was about to collapse... Something was wrong. She could feel her body sweating profusely... But why?


	8. An Experiment Gone Wrong

Yumomo could barely lift her head and quickly became furious. She could feel her chest flaming up inside with rage toward Tororo. She knew this must've been his doing. That device... She made her way towards him, dragging her feet lazily, getting progressively tired the closer she got to him. "What the... What is this..." she hunched over, gasping for air.

She felt so lethargic all of the sudden, she could just drop... And the only thing fueling her now was the bitter anger she felt toward Tororo for causing it.

Dib raised a quizzical eyebrow. The girl Keronian was acting strange suddenly, like something was draining her energy. He watched and blinked at her once.

Tororo still had the device in his hand and knew what was going on. It made him curious that the effect was delayed, but he refrained from looking directly at the device, acting like he didn't notice as he looked off in some other direction. "Pu?" He turned to her when she got closer and tentatively scooted back.

"What's going on?" Dib asked, looking from her to Tororo and back. "Is it your organs? I could take a look," he offered with an eager lift in his voice as a grin spread across his face, moving towards Yumomo. "I know about Keronian anatomy."

She ignored Dib. "Get back here you fuckin' coward..." Yumomo hissed at Tororo under her breath, making sure he was the only one who could hear her losing her cool.

Yumomo hadn't felt this infuriated since the incident where she had almost been thrown out of the army. She still remembered the humiliating punishment she underwent the following month; angering her even more.

She stood up again, using all her might to chase after Tororo in attempt to retrieve his device and reverse that stupid function on him... At least get it to stop draining her energy.

Where was the energy going? Yumomo was no fool and could guess in a heartbeat. The lazy tadpole was using it all for himself. She clenched her fists, hot tears of fury burning in her eyes as her adrenaline began to ignite a more negative energy within her, her movements becoming slightly faster because of it.

Why did he do this? Did he hate her for some reason? Was it something she had said when she first arrived? Maybe he rejected her as an apprentice because of how badly she messed in her notebook? Whatever it was about, it lodged a painful lump in her throat.

Dib stared, trying to figure out what was going on. It was something between them. The girl seemed infuriated at the red one (was it a male or female? It hadn't said anything, so he couldn't tell).

As Yumomo got closer, Tororo moved further away, exhibiting no shame in 'cowardice.' He knew she was onto him and didn't expect to face any consequences. He had her energy. He could run away and she would only get more tired the longer she chased him, while he would get more energetic.

He was ready to bolt.

Yumomo could tell by his body movements what he was going to do. She would do anything to get that device from him, even if it meant she had to injure him. Part of Yumomo's job was to protect her mentor, but she did know many of the rules, and one of the most important ones was to report any kind of physical abuse done to her, and Yumomo considered energy sapping to be physical abuse.

Reaching in her hair, she quickly yanked out her bomb, Nade-ling, and threw it at him. A few beeps ensued before Nade-ling detonated hardly a foot away from Tororo. As quickly as she could, she stumbled toward the explosion, her arms throbbing with anticipation at the thought of getting her hands around his neck.

The explosion caught the attention from everyone on the main deck. Heads turned in the direction of the sound as it detonated near Tororo, stopping him in his tracks just as he was about to turn around. He spun a half circle on his foot and fell over with a dazed look on his face, body charred, smoking, and bleeding. He let out a small groan and landed face down on the floor, miraculously still holding the device, but if she tried to take it from him now, it would be easy.

Alarm spread through the room. Garuru hadn't seen what proceeded the attack and assumed Yumomo had initiated a fight. She seemed to be in poor condition, as if ill, but he couldn't explain that and for now had to do the only thing he knew would ensure everyone"s safety. He quickly moved between them. "Stand down!" he commanded Yumomo with bared teeth, aiming a gun at her. He would not tolerate any insubordinance, especially in front of the other captain.

Even if Garuru hadn't commanded it, Yumomo would have collapsed just as weakly as she had, feeling both helpless and ashamed. How could she have let herself get so angry? How could she have let her captain down? Now she got into trouble, and explaining her use of explosives wouldn't be easy.  
"Sir... Please... He's..." Yumomo didn't have the energy to speak clearly, slurring her words as she spoke. She pointed slowly at Tororo's hand with the device in it. All she could do was hope Garuru assessed the situation from there, resting her head on her arm and not moving again. Yumomo had used up all her energy trying to capture Tororo. Nade-ling had been her final stand.


	9. Roommates

If there was anywhere in the world Yumomo would rather be right now, it was anywhere other than here. This was just like her days back in school when she had been harassed continuously by the other students. When she had had enough, sometimes Yumomo acted out, causing more officers than just Garuru to have had her at gun point.

Humiliated to no end, she laid there helplessly, losing hope that she could ever fix the bad impression she had made on the Garuru Platoon. Perhaps this was it...

Both Yumomo and Tororo seemed to be on the brink of passing out, barely awake and barely moving. It was clear to Garuru that there was more to the fight than the grenade. Yumomo had tried to tell him something.

His eyes went to Tororo's hand. He reached down and took the device from the Shinpei, but he wouldn't know what it was and at the moment that didn't matter—he would assess the details later. "Please excuse this disruption," he said as his gaze lifted to the aliens staring at them from every end of the room.

"That's right, get back to work. Nothing to see here," Lard Nar said to his crew as he walked in front of them, standing next to Garuru and turning to the two floored Keronians with a finger to his chin. "Scourge, take these two to their rooms. I think they're in Section B."

A large Vortian stepped out from behind Lard Nar, holding a massive glowing two sided mace, both sides bearing a freakishly sinister face with horns upon their heads. He slammed it on the ground next to the two Keronians. Yumomo jumped in shock at how close it was slammed, staring into the sinister looking face on this unusual mace that glared back at her. Scourge crouched down to their level, his glowing eyes piercing right through their lenses.

"Awww... Have you been naughty little kiddies?" he sneered in a deep, raspy sounding voice. He almost sounded ill.

Grabbing both of them tightly by their legs with one hand, he stood up and made his way through the ship, walking them through a dark narrow hall with many doors where most of the crew slept. Scourge's glowing gear lit their path as they passed through.

The Vortian guard stopped at a door and opened it. He threw the two tadpoles at the ground with brute force. "Sweet dreams~" he hissed, followed by a sinister chuckle before he slammed the door and locked them in.

Yumomo gasped for breath, having had the wind knocked out of her. She could barely feel her head... Her whole body even... She was in a daze, not even remembering what had happened between her and Tororo at this point.

Despite the fact he was brimming with energy, Tororo couldn't move either. He was in too much pain. He made a series of half annoyed, half dazed noises. Judging by the size and weapons on the guard, it would be stupid to resist him anyway. Fortunately his helmet buffered his fall when he landed face down, glasses cracking but already cracked from the explosion.

"Puh... " He heard Yumomo, and started to lift himself up, looking around the empty room after the Vortian had left. There was a table, a chair, and a bed... a bunk bed. He noticed Yumomo was laying nearby. She looked worse off than he was.

Suddenly he jolted upright, realizing the device wasn't in his hand anymore. "Huh? My energy transfer device! Where is it?!" He looked left and right to see if it had dropped. Someone, maybe Garuru, must have taken it. He fell back down on his rear in defeat and glanced at Yumomo.

She wouldn't get her energy back until someone switched the device off. Had he not heard the door lock, he would have taken this opportunity to go get it, but that was not an option. They were trapped.

Yumomo could feel her memory and her sense come back slowly but surely. She noticed her lenses were lying right in front of her, since she'd fallen head first and landed right on her face. They were cracked and damaged all over and there was no point in wearing them, even if she could reach them. Moving her arm was too big of a task. She simply had no energy left to move. To care, even. She'd already blown it... Yumomo could expect Garuru to come in any moment telling her that she was dismissed from this mission.

She had tried to tough it out, but now Yumomo had reached her limit. Her eyes closed tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. Dark char and blood-filled tears quietly hit the floor under her. She made no noise, but her shoulders trembled.

Why was he doing this to her? Though she could figure out many things, this she could not. All she wanted to do was good, remembering her notebook had been left back on the main deck. This only increased the density of her tears. Yumomo only hoped Tororo wouldn't notice, or would simply ignore her as he always did.

Tororo had begun to examine the lock on the door, but it wasn't electronic. He wasn't any good with manual locks. As he turned back however, he saw Yumomo's shoulders trembling.

Naturally, he thought she was having a seizure.

Her glasses had fallen off. He saw that the floor was wet and realized quickly that he was wrong. Was she... crying? Why? Sure he had drained her energy, but it was nothing to cry over. At least, he only assumed she didn't understand the full extent of his plan—he was very used to being smarter than everyone else and didn't give her apt credit.

He was a bit stunned when he saw her eyes. He didn't expect them to be so... shiny...

Who ever knew why girls cried, though. He certainly didn't. He pushed her glasses off to the side (they were beyond normal means of repair) as he went up to inspect her. "Huh? What's wrong?"

Yumomo was surprised that Tororo asked her whats wrong, her eyes widening when she looked up at him. The dim light in the corner of the room made her eyes look a violet bluish, though they were glazed over with tears.

Blushing a little, she turned her face away from him, hiding her eyes. "D-don't look at me..." she sobbed, choking on a knot in her throat. She hated when others saw her cry, and she especially didn't want HIM to see her cry. Of all the Keronians, it had to be him...

Though she tried to stop her tears, she still struggled, clenching her fists in frustration as she tried to wipe them away before they could get too far down her cheeks, not wanting to seem like more of a baby in front of Tororo.

The pain all over Tororo's side from where the bomb hit started to return and he tenderly touched his arm, quickly retracting his hand when it stung, but his attention was more on Yumomo, wondering why she was suddenly in tears, and why she didn't want to be looked at.

He looked off to the side a bit, as if averting his eyes. "Ok, I won't, but I don't know why. You're pretty when you cry. You should stop, though. It'll look bad on your report." he informed, although not entirely sure why. That was what he wanted—for her to look bad. His brow furrowed. He got up, legs a bit shaky, and walked to the bunk bed, shrugging it off.

"Pu pu pu," he laughed into his hand lightly and began to climb up to the top bunk, taking the opportunity while she was down to claim it.

Yumomo's heart skipped a beat. Most of her classmates who had seen her eyes made fun of how lifeless and dull they were... He was the last one she'd expect to compliment them.

With this thought, her tears ceased for the moment. She felt as though her blushing was searing right through her charred chreeks. She hid her face in embarrassment. What was this feeling in her stomach? It felt kind of... fluttery. She couldn't explain this kind of feeling, for she had never experienced such a thing. It made her feel like... smiling.

Sadly, she was too weak to smile. But it made her feel so strange. Maybe this was caused by a chemical her body released to cope with the pain.

Hoping that was the case, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Tororo had crawled up to the top bunk. Narrowing her eyes in displeasure, she realized he had left her to lay on the floor. Well, figures. The peace and quiet in the room was about as good as her night was going to get.

Tororo disregarded her and immediately went to arrange the blankets and pillows on his bed in such a fashion that suited him, forming a round nest on the mattress in which to curl up in. He didn't feel well, scraped up and covered in dry blood and stinging wounds, and to top it off he was in a new place, expected to sleep here. He hated changes to his environment. He had yet to set up his computers and tech, and there were no mountains of junk and junk food or familiar smells to calm him.

He felt extremely uncomfortable, but sought as much comfort as he could in the little nest he created. He glanced back down at the floor to see that Yumomo still hadn't moved. Her face was all red, but he attributed that to her latest injury. He merely laughed into his hand. "Pu pu. Night!" he said triumphantly and turned around, laying down and facing the wall.

A while later, after Yumomo assumed he fell asleep, there was a faint scratching noise. The door. Something was tampering with the lock.

Yumomo's gaze shifted toward the door, not sure whether to be excited or sick. This could be Garuru coming to scold them... Or perhaps that large Vortian who threw them in here. The longest thirty seconds of her life passed, and the door slightly creaked open, something with four blue glowing dots crawling across the floor quickly and perching itself on Yumomo's back.

"Nade-ling..." she muttered weakly, rubbing the top of his head with the tip of her finger. She'd never been so happy to see her little invention. "Great job..." she felt a new sense of hope spark within her. Maybe Nade-ling could assist her in getting that device!

"Keh Keh Keh..."


	10. Chasing Nade-ling

Tororo heard the door open and looked over his shoulder, but at the sight of Nade-ling, his disinterested gaze turned back to the wall. It wasn't Garuru or anyone he expected. He proceeded to zone off, content to fall asleep soon so he wouldn't have to endure the pain caused by that very same spider bomb.

Yumomo grabbed hold of Nade-ling and reached into her helmet. She pulled out a cord, which she plugged between Nade-ling's fangs. His eyes flashed green as she tinkered with him a bit before setting him back down. Once on the ground, Nade-ling promptly ran out of the room.

"Keh Keh Keh..." she giggled quietly to herself, glancing up at Tororo's bunk from where she was laying on the floor. She planned to give Tororo a taste of his own medicine, assuming that Nade-ling could successfully retrieve the device...

Meanwhile, Garuru had no idea what to do with the energy transfer device, so he gave it to a pink-skinned Vortian they called 777. He was a scientist, so Garuru was sure he would have a good chance at figuring it out.

It didn't take long for Nade-ling to find his target as he crawled through the vents and other openings, using them as shortcuts through the ship.

From the ceiling, Nade-ling followed 777, awaiting the right time to retrieve the energy transfer device. Usually this kind of stuff was beyond Nade-ling's programmed capabilities, but Yumomo currently had him under manual control.

"Doo doo doo... doo dooo ddoooo dodododo... " 777 hummed cheery a tune as he walked down the hall and stopped inside the lab. He carried the oval-shaped device and when he reached the room, set it on the table. He then pulled down a light to examine it. "Now let's see what you do, huh?"

He turned the device over, then reached for a screwdriver. It was in a drawer under the table, so he bent over to get it. In the process, he dropped the screwdriver and it rolled halfway across the room. He left the device unattended as he went to fetch it.

A low voice came from the doorway. "Don't. Move."

Garuru stood there with a firm stare. His gaze lifted to the ceiling. As Keron's most renowned sniper, he had a keen eye, and he had seen Nade-ling following the Vortian through the hall. He didn't know if the robot was intelligent or not, but he knew how to handle it either way and came with a gun at his side. He took aim and fired.

Yumomo saw this coming just before Garuru fired, managing to dodge the bullet by a hair. Immediately this frustrated her... The fool! If he blew up Nade-ling before detonation, it could destroy a whole section of the ship as the blow would be much more powerful than the one that had affected Tororo.

Though Nade-ling narrowly escaped the blast, he aimed his landing well- landing on the table right next to the device. Using his mouth as a magnet, he grabbed it and briskly scurried up the wall, jumping into the shadows. Yumomo promptly deactivated his eyesight, causing his eyes to stop glowing and making him difficult to spot.

She waited in anticipation. She couldn't see anything on Nade-ling's end, and could only hear what he could. She made sure that Nade-ling would stay completely still unless fired at, hoping that Garuru wouldn't spot him in the shadows- which she had also anticipated- readying herself to activate his sight and move him once again if need be.

However, Yumomo was running out of time—The energy transfer device had already taken its toll on her, making her increasingly weary. Her eyelids felt like they weighed a ton.

Garuru fired twice more as the robot escaped into the shadows, missing and blowing holes into the walls. He grit his teeth and took aim again, trying to spot the living bomb, but it had disappeared.

"Whoa. What is that thing?" 777 had covered his antennae from the loud gunshot and ducked, looking where they saw Nade-ling last. He made to move in that direction.

"It's a grenade. Stay away from it." Garuru warned, stopping 777 in his tracks. The Lieutenant kept a steady eye in search of Nade-ling and slowly made to follow it, but it seemed they had lost it for now.

Relieved at what she could hear from Nade-ling's end, Yumomo could tell they were giving up the search. She decided to wait for the two to leave before reactivating him. She didn't want to give away his position now that he had exactly what she needed. The sooner she got her hands on the energy transfer device, the sooner she could deactivate the stupid thing and reclaim her energy from Tororo. And then some.

Hearing Garuru's voice, she couldn't help but worry about her impression on him. Her intention was not to disappoint the Lieutenant, but she would do what was necessary to defend herself whether he approved or not. After all, she wasn't the one to blame for all this trouble. It was that.. Tororo...

She was beginning to think Tororo was doing this just to give her a bad image and lead to her early dismissal.

In fact... That was exactly what he was trying to do!

Anxious to get the device back and reverse the affect onto him, she decided the only way to get the two away from Nade-ling was to create a diversion. A small transparent keyboard appeared in front of her when she pressed a small button on her helmet. Her helmet controlled devices linked to it, such as Nade-ling. Her typing was soundless as her keyboard was a hologram, so she didn't have to worry about slowing down to keep quiet for her roommate.

Nade-ling reacted to the command immediately, shooting a tiny metal ball-much like a BB gun bullet; from his mouth with incredible speed. It shattered the screen of a nearby computer. With how small the ball was and how quick this had happened, the source of the blow was unknown.

777 drew in a breath through his teeth as if in pain from the damage done to his computers. Garuru's eyes shot in one direction where he thought it might have come, then another, but he couldn't find the source of the blast and dared not shoot any more. 777 was alarmed and about to stop him from causing more damage.

"Where are you going?" the Vortian asked as he saw Garuru turn away.

Garuru looked over his shoulder. "To the person controlling it. Stay in here in case it comes back. Arm yourself." he said. Being that it wasn't in his position to give this Vortian orders (not to be fooled by his modest attitude, 777 was a highly respected scientist and engineer, top rank in his fields), it was more of a suggestion. He stepped out of the room and started heading down the hall. He went to Yumomo and Tororo's room.

He tried the door. It was unlocked, unlike how Scourge had left it.

"Yumomo." he addressed, sounding displeased.

Yumomo laid motionless on the floor. Her eyes were closed, as she had already heard Garuru coming her way over Nade-ling's end. She didn't seem to have anything in front of her or around her other than her broken lenses. She looked so weak, even slightly ill, and cold from laying on the floor. The tip of her lip was a very pale blue color, and her light blue skin noticeably more pale as well..

Yumomo looked enervated to the point of near unconsciousness. Her eyes had bags under them from being drained of energy, and her struggling to keep them open. There was exhaustion in her voice. "He has sapped my energy... with that device... I cannot move... until I have it... I can... deactivate..."

Hmm... How long had she been laying there? Garuru looked around for Tororo and quickly spotted him asleep on one of the beds... "I see... " he responded with an analytic pause.

"Are you controlling your grenade-bot?" he then questioned unhappily, stepping forward and stopping in front of her. He looked down at the tadpole for a moment with a cold gaze, then knelt. "You should have said something when we were on the main deck," he said with his eyes narrowed, then offered a hand.

He didn't doubt that Tororo had started this, not her. "You should get in bed before you get sick." he said. She seemed to have no energy at all, so he helped her up and walked her to the bed.

Yumomo was grateful that Garuru understood, feeling as though her mission here had entirely crumbled. It would be best to let him know right away next time rather than trying to take the situation into her own hands, she thought inwardly.

As Yumomo laid down on her bed, she decided at this point she could tell Garuru the truth. "I only controlled him so he could retrieve the device... I had no intention of harming anyone..." she admitted weakly, feeling bad that she had to cause some damage in order to distract them. "I agreed to test it... but I wasn't aware of it's function... I'm sorry I've..." she attempted to apologize, but her voice slowly became a low mumble. She was starting to go unconscious as the last of her energy was leaving her body.

Tororo's device had sapped the last of her energy and she retired right in the middle of talking. She was in a coma-like state now.

Until the device was deactivated, she may not wake.

Garuru knew who Yumomo's parents were and expected great things from her. All he had to do was give her time. He waited a while after she fell asleep, then pulled the blankets up around her before turning to leave.

He looked back with a glare at the top bunk before walking out. It was not just a coincidence that she was doing so poorly on her first two days. He would keep an eye on the Shinpei... He was a troublemaker.

Garuru stepped out and re-locked the door behind him. Next, he needed to find the device and deactivate it.


End file.
